AMP repeal bill likely

AMP repeal bill likely

July 23, 2007

Pharmacy organizations are pushing hard to introduce new legislation in Congress that would repeal all or parts of the final average manufacturer price rule recently released by CMS. Congressional insiders are hoping that the Patient Access to Medicaid Generic Prescription Drugs Act would help reverse the most troubling aspects of the AMP rule. In contrast to the AMP rule, which many experts expect would decrease generic utilization, the bill is expected to mandate that states must achieve a 65% generic utilizationa 10% rise over current levels. The bill also includes a new formula that would require CMS to collect data from retail pharmacies-excluding mailorder pharmacies and others that receive special discounts-to determine the actual retail acquisition cost of generic drugs. The bill, which was not formally introduced by press time, is sponsored by Nancy Boyda (D, Kan.).